It all started at 2:40 a.m. on Sunday morning when I got up for what I thought was just going to be a normal pee visit, I was making many by now. Well I was wrong, bloody show appeared, and my contractions started right after I returned to bed. They were pretty mild and I could lay through them and not have much pain but they were coming about 10 min apart. So I couldn't sleep anymore in hopes that maybe this was actually happening. So I came out put in a movie (27 dresses) and when 5:00 came around and I was still having contractions every 10 min I went in to tell Matt that she was probably going to be making her appearance soon.
Well....the contractions kept coming but they started spacing out. They were getting longer and stronger but they would jump from 6 or 7 min apart to 15 min apart. So Matt and I hung around the house, showered, put our stuff together, walked our court, watched a movie, and played a game of UNO. During all of this my contractions were super strong and I would have to stop and get into a better position to get through them as they were mostly a min to a min and a half long.
Finally at about 4 or so they had consistently been 5 or 6 min apart for an hour so we called the Dr. and he said it was reasonable to go ahead and come in since I had been laboring all day. He couldn't promise that they would keep me but to go ahead and go in. So we arrived at the hospital and were in the triage room by about 5:15 and I was already at 5 cm! I was so proud of myself for making it that long at home. So we were admitted and sent to our labor and delivery room. This was actually happening!!
Here it took 4 attempts at an iv and have I mentioned before I hate them, I mean terrified pass out getting those things done and it took 4 times ugggh. But then once we got all settled and I was hooked up for a bit I was able to get my epidural which i was also very terrified of but without reason it really was no big deal, the iv was worse. So by 7:30 I was comfortable and laboring at the hospital and I was at about 6 cm at that time.
Things started slowing down so they started pitocin and put an internal monitor in, which was great because I would look over see a HUGE contraction going on and really not be able to tell! What a lifesaver those things are. So by 11:30 I was 10 cm and it was almost time to start pushing. I had a little bit of cervix left so they let me go about 15 min while my nurse (who was AMAZING by the way) got the room set up. By a little before midnight I was pushing and working hard. Good thing is you have enough time to rest in between pushes and get your breath back.
Unfortunately I had a bad feeling once I had been pushing for almost an hour and she called the Dr. in to watch my progress. She kept saying I was doing a great job and moving her down with every push but it wasn't moving as fast as I though it would. So the Dr. came in and monitored me for about half an hour and didn't say one word the whole time. ugggggh anxiety came creeping in on me as i thought of the next options for me and baby. He let me go for 15 more min and then came back. Unfortunately my pubic bone was too rounded and wasn't leaving her enough room to get her head around it. So he thought it was safer for me and the baby if they took her via csection after 2 hours of pushing ::cries::
I felt awful for crying but this wasn't in the plans I was supposed to be able to deliver my baby naturally just like my mom did with all her babies. I was scared of being awake as my insides are placed on a table and a baby is squeezed and pulled from my body. My husband was great and started to gear up, he loved his operating room outfit. The next thing you know I'm in the OR and the anesthesiologist (an amazing man!!) was at my head and talking me through my nerves. 15 min later the best sound in all of the world filled the room and my little lydia was brought to the warmer next to me. She was only 7lb 12oz (ultrasound WAYYYY off) but absolutely perfect!
It helped me get through the rest of the procedure by looking at my beautiful baby girl being worked on and loved on by her daddy. It was uncomfortable yes and I was shivering like no other but knowing she was ok and she was here made it all a little better.
She was born at 2:38 a.m. Monday May 3rd, almost exactly 24 hours from my first contraction. What a looong day but with one amazing gift at the end of it!!
I won't go into how my recovery is going but my baby girl is healthy and perfect and the confidence I have in myself and what my body can handle and go through has drastically changed.
So now we begin Life with Lydia :)
